Background: Forensic entomology is an increasing area of research, focuses on the violent crime, and deals with the necrophagous-feeding insects that typically decompose carcasses. The present study aimed to update the baseline data of the decay process and its associated successive waves of necrophagous flies on rabbits placed in an urban city (Cairo, Egypt) in spring season. Results: Six rabbits divided equally into two groups were used. The first group was killed by asphyxia via hanging and marked as the control (C), while the second group was intoxicated with rodenticide warfarin (WI). The fresh, bloated, active decay, advanced decay, and skeletal stages of decomposition were observed and defined in all carcasses. Out of 30 insect families collected, 3 families were more common (Calliphoridae, Muscidae, and Sarcophagidae). Thirteen insect families were collected of which Calliphoridae, Muscidae, and Sarcophagidae were common. A total of 10,121 individuals (immature and adult stages) of 26 species were collected, of which Chrysomya rufifacies was the most common species on both types of carcasses (14.7%) followed by Musca domestica, Chrysomya megacephala, Chrysomya albiceps, Muscina stabulans, Sarcophaga hertipes, Calliphora vicina, Musca sorbens, Lucilia cuprina, Sarcophaga argyrostoma, and Lucilia sericata (2.0-12.4%). The other 15 species were represented by small numbers (cumulatively 2.9%). Among the collected flies, Scathophaga litorea (Scathophagidae) was reported for the first time as a new report in Egypt. Unexpectedly, significantly more adults and immatures were attracted to WI than to C carcasses (P < 0.05). Conclusion: This study investigated the rabbit carrion dipteran necrophagous fauna as a model which may be of value for medico-legal cases.

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Journal of Medical Entomology and Parasitology is one of the series issued quarterly by the Egyptian Academic Journal of Biological Sciences. It is an important specialist journal covering the latest advances in that subject. It publishes original research and review papers on all aspects of basic and applied medical entomology, parasitology and host-parasite relationships, including the latest discoveries in parasite biochemistry, molecular biology, genetics, ecology and epidemiology in the content of the biological, medical entomology and veterinary sciences. In addition to that, the journal promotes research on the impact of living organisms on their environment with emphasis on subjects such a resource, depletion, pollution, biodiversity, ecosystem…..etc. www.eajbs.eg.net Provided for non-commercial research and education use. Not for reproduction, distribution or commercial use.

Arthropods collected off the corpse or at a crime scene can be used to determine the presence of toxins in a body at the death time. This study was planned and objected at examining the possible use of fly larvae as indicators for detecting rabbit poisoning with Warfarin rodenticide. For this, Warfarin was examined in blood samples of an intoxicated rabbit carcass and maggots that were collected off such remain using the High-Performance Liquid Chromatography. The blood of the intoxicated rabbit was positive. The maggots showed two different results: (1) Positive that may refer to the feeding of larvae upon the rabbit liver which retains the toxin for 90 days post-mortem and (2) Negative that may be due to that this toxin is highly degraded after 18 hours of ingestion while the maggots started to invade the carcass after 48 hours of death. The controls of both rabbit and maggots were negative. Our results confirmed the reliability of entomological specimens for qualitative analyses of the toxins.